Telegraph UK: Playing Bangladesh is a batsmans's dream

[BrianLara7]

By the way Scyld berry is one of the most jingoistic and arrogant cricketer writers of our times (England and India have the most). His most famous piece in recent times was the one about how South Africa were doing such an injustice to the Queen's land by not coming "fully prepared".. turns out they were only prepared enough to thrash the mighty World nation xi 2-0 and take the world's no.1 ranking. Scyld berry unsurprisingly did not comment further on this issue.

[roman]

We need a reality check. Seriously. We havent done anything world shattering that will make people say Bangladesh is a good side. Few wins here And there are just not good enough to shut critics mouth.

Let's face it. After 12 years of playing test cricket do we have the attack to take 20 wickets? Do we have the batsmen to score 200+? We are still struggling to find a decent pacer, decent opening batsman. I absolutely agree with Meazz1. We simply don't have enough success to shut the critics. And I think we really don't have the willpower to change this thorny situation

[Raynman]

stats can be manipulated easily.

If you choose to put on rose colored glasses and say, BD in their last 50 over encouters defeated IND, SL, WI, ENG and NZ not to mention ZIM, NED, IRE as well but that does not mean we belong in the top half of the ODI world.

Bottom line is until our winning habits prove consistent we have to abosorb the criticism thrown at us.

I'm not sure what the full solution is or if it is attainable (Board corrections, internal dev programs etc.) but I really feel that partnering up with ZIM and IRE to have continuous tours between them while inviting one or more G8 nations in each trip for a multi national tournament will benefit all of these countries. I'm sure SA (when in NZ), ENG (when in IRE) and IND/SL/PAK (when in BD) will be willing to send their teams schedule permitting.

[BrianLara7]

Originally Posted by Raynman
stats can be manipulated easily.

If you choose to put on rose colored glasses and say, BD in their last 50 over encouters defeated IND, SL, WI, ENG and NZ not to mention ZIM, NED, IRE as well but that does not mean we belong in the top half of the ODI world.

Bottom line is until our winning habits prove consistent we have to abosorb the criticism thrown at us.

I'm not sure what the full solution is or if it is attainable (Board corrections, internal dev programs etc.) but I really feel that partnering up with ZIM and IRE to have continuous tours between them while inviting one or more G8 nations in each trip for a multi national tournament will benefit all of these countries. I'm sure SA (when in NZ), ENG (when in IRE) and IND/SL/PAK (when in BD) will be willing to send their teams schedule permitting.

What we need is an Imran Khan... or someone similar. TO turn these bunch of pussycats into world beaters... need a change of attitude.. atleast if not Imran then someone like Ganguly.

[mufi_02]

Originally Posted by BrianLara7
What we need is an Imran Khan... or someone similar. TO turn these bunch of pussycats into world beaters... need a change of attitude.. atleast if not Imran then someone like Ganguly.

we have Shakib Al Hasan . He can be our Imran Khan/ Mansoor Patuadi/ Ranatunga. If not Shakib, then I don't see anyone else in the next 10-15 years.

[mij]

Scyld Berry saying what I been hearing since Bangladesh start playing cricket, if you ask my 4 years old boy he can tell you Bangladesh is rubbish. He is not saying anything new basically he got nothing better to write.

[BrianLara7]

Originally Posted by mufi_02
we have Shakib Al Hasan . He can be our Imran Khan/ Mansoor Patuadi/ Ranatunga. If not Shakib, then I don't see anyone else in the next 10-15 years.

Shakib as a player might be comparable to them but I was talking about a leader like Imran Khan. Every single player who has come in to the team under Imran (Wasim, waqar etc) has credit much of their success to Imran and his leadership as well as his knowledge of cricket (batting, bowling). We need someone like that

[shakibrulz]

This has been discussed to death - thanks for your pearl of wisdom, Scythe. Rather than pointing out the subtle improvements and stay more objective, he goes on a rant that gives cricinfo commenters a tough competition.

[Haradhon]

Well, not to be totally pessimistic, there has been some progress and improvement to overall quality of players, although one can say the progress is slower than expected. The cricketers from newer generation has a better sense of cricket and a good example of that is Nasir. If you guys are referring to Shakib being the only quality player, please include Tamim and Nasir too. It is true that our bowling is not intrusive enough to win a game when needed. I was expecting to have at least one spinner who can take wickets when needed. But what has happened during the past 12 years is that a slow improvement. So I remain optimistic as such more of Nasir-type players will be added to the team. In the mean time we have to feed our teens a little more geneticlly engineered crop and let them grow their muscles while spinners take their load

[al Furqaan]

Maybe the gist of the content is true (despite some usual hyperbolic statements) but I don't see how this article is any different from that one published right after the T20 that seemed to have been just been updated and published. This is a totally random article.

[BengaliPagol]

we are just a group of fans denying the fact that Bangladesh are a crap team.

[al Furqaan]

Originally Posted by BengaliPagol
we are just a group of fans denying the fact that Bangladesh are a crap team.

Wait, who has claimed that Bangladesh is a good side? I didn't see any posts. How is this op-ed any different from a hypothetical political piece that would cite Bangladesh's corruption and overall living standards to argue that her statehood should be revoked? Or UN membership was given too early without the necessary infrastructure and that we should be demoted to observer status or as a permenent non-state member?

Its one thing for a Bangladeshi to criticize because its almost necessarily constructive. But the exact same content coming from most non-Bangladeshis is going to have a completely different conotation. At least thats my view.

[Zunaid]

Alf - bad analogy. Membership to the UN or statehood is independent of governance else 100s of country's will need to be expelled from the UN and be denied statehood. Membership to the elite Test status has some concomitant standards that need to be met. You and I may agree that we meet that now but it is also fair to say that others may disagree.

[al Furqaan]

Originally Posted by Zunaid
Alf - bad analogy. Membership to the UN or statehood is independent of governance else 100s of country's will need to be expelled from the UN and be denied statehood. Membership to the elite Test status has some concomitant standards that need to be met. You and I may agree that we meet that now but it is also fair to say that others may disagree.

The UN would have to expel everyone! But you'd have to say that the country is doing a poorer job of governance than the cricket team is of playing cricket. And they've been doing it since 1971. At least I think so.

Mustafa Kamal as much as I dislike him, if the franchising of the FC cricket actually works out and the central contracts remain and expand in the coming years will have probably been one of our best administrators, if not the best.

Perhaps this analogy works better. Imagine a Democrat's critique of the Obama presidency. Then imagine Ann Coulter's. Surely you wouldn't say Coulter's is as valid as say Jimmy Carter's?

This fellow says we've skewed cricket statistics. He mentions SR Tendulkar as an example. This is hardly different from Ann Coulter spreading the fear that Obama is really a communist. They have equal morsel's of truth. We can't deny that Obama is a conservative but that doesn't make him a commie. Similarly, no one denies we SUCK, but he's using disingenous means to make an otherwise valid point.

We've played Australia in exactly 4 tests. How will those skew the overall stats of the Aussies who've played 500+ matches? Sure Tendy averages almost 3x as much against us as he does otherwise. But we've also played a correspondingly fewer number of Tests. We're playing our first test after 11 months...does he want 11 year gaps? Oh wait, he probably wants us to not play at all.

[Sohel]

We suck and have utterly and often spectacularly failed to meet the entire spectrum of expectations as a test playing nation. The truth is at once brutal and sufficient. So it's extremely annoying to observe those who feel the itch to resort to suppositions and dishonesty when neither is necessary. We in Bangladesh are used to this type of behavior thanks to our major political parties.

We'll simply have to take the malicious venom from noted enemies like Scyld Berry until we begin to do the right things and win matches in the process.

[meazz1]

Originally Posted by Sohel
We suck and have utterly and often spectacularly failed to meet the entire spectrum of expectations as a test playing nation. The truth is at once brutal and sufficient. So it's extremely annoying to observe those who feel the itch to resort to suppositions and dishonesty when neither is necessary. We in Bangladesh are used to this type of behavior thanks to our major political parties.

We'll simply have to take the malicious venom from noted enemies like Scyld Berry until we begin to do the right things and win matches in the process.

Agreed 100%.
You couldn't have said any better!

[BrianLara7]

Originally Posted by al Furqaan
The UN would have to expel everyone! But you'd have to say that the country is doing a poorer job of governance than the cricket team is of playing cricket. And they've been doing it since 1971. At least I think so.

Mustafa Kamal as much as I dislike him, if the franchising of the FC cricket actually works out and the central contracts remain and expand in the coming years will have probably been one of our best administrators, if not the best.

Perhaps this analogy works better. Imagine a Democrat's critique of the Obama presidency. Then imagine Ann Coulter's. Surely you wouldn't say Coulter's is as valid as say Jimmy Carter's?

This fellow says we've skewed cricket statistics. He mentions SR Tendulkar as an example. This is hardly different from Ann Coulter spreading the fear that Obama is really a communist. They have equal morsel's of truth. We can't deny that Obama is a conservative but that doesn't make him a commie. Similarly, no one denies we SUCK, but he's using disingenous means to make an otherwise valid point.

We've played Australia in exactly 4 tests. How will those skew the overall stats of the Aussies who've played 500+ matches? Sure Tendy averages almost 3x as much against us as he does otherwise. But we've also played a correspondingly fewer number of Tests. We're playing our first test after 11 months...does he want 11 year gaps? Oh wait, he probably wants us to not play at all.

Playing against Bangladesh has skewed tendulkar's statistics in a big way, he averages 136 against us with 5 hundreds... and also has 3 hundreds against Zimbabwe... without these he averages 52 with 43 hundreds.. while Sangakara and Kallis average above 54 if you take out Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.. Tendulkar needs to thank bangladesh in a big way, thanks to them he got his 100th 100 after failing for a year against good teams.. and thanks to them for raising his average by 3 points and giving 5 test hundreds.

[mij]

Originally Posted by BrianLara7
Playing against Bangladesh has skewed tendulkar's statistics in a big way, he averages 136 against us with 5 hundreds... and also has 3 hundreds against Zimbabwe... without these he averages 52 with 43 hundreds.. while Sangakara and Kallis average above 54 if you take out Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.. Tendulkar needs to thank bangladesh in a big way, thanks to them he got his 100th 100 after failing for a year against good teams.. and thanks to them for raising his average by 3 points and giving 5 test hundreds.

WOW... you know alot.

[BengaliPagol]

Originally Posted by BrianLara7
Tendulkar needs to thank bangladesh in a big way, thanks to them he got his 100th 100 after failing for a year against good teams.

No one has to thank anyone because we beat India in the game which Tendulkar got his 10th hundred.

[al Furqaan]

Originally Posted by BrianLara7
Playing against Bangladesh has skewed tendulkar's statistics in a big way, he averages 136 against us with 5 hundreds... and also has 3 hundreds against Zimbabwe... without these he averages 52 with 43 hundreds.. while Sangakara and Kallis average above 54 if you take out Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.. Tendulkar needs to thank bangladesh in a big way, thanks to them he got his 100th 100 after failing for a year against good teams.. and thanks to them for raising his average by 3 points and giving 5 test hundreds.

Even with a 52 average and 43 hundreds the SRT fan machine would have him rated higher than Sanga and Kallis.

[Zeeshan]

If I have to google Scyld Berry, then perhaps I don't have to take his words seriously on the first place... that of course doesn't deny that we suck...and i mean real bad

[BrianLara7]

Originally Posted by al Furqaan
Even with a 52 average and 43 hundreds the SRT fan machine would have him rated higher than Sanga and Kallis.

Yea but then again that's typical of SC specially Indians... for them Kapil dev is as good as all rounder as Imran and Sobers and Sehwag a better batsman than Lara/ Ponting

[al Furqaan]

Originally Posted by BrianLara7
Yea but then again that's typical of SC specially Indians... for them Kapil dev is as good as all rounder as Imran and Sobers and Sehwag a better batsman than Lara/ Ponting

Don't just blame Indians, most of the whole world has been duped by picture perfect strokes into thinking SRT is the best thing in cricket since the abdo guard!

At any rate, Bangladesh plays a small enough number of matches to counter any stat inflation. We're already in Test cricket's third tier, how much further should we go?

[RazabQ]

Haters gonna hate ... especially one who claimed Pakistan's touring of England was not a true away tour because there was, and I kid you not, "better curry in Manchester than in Lahore". So after that anything this conservative rag's jingoistic doofus has to say, I don't bother with.

Having said that, we do suck in Test cricket and our paucity of fixtures doesn't help. Of course the ineptitude of our board is the main killer here. A good board would a) have fixed domestic cricket years ago, b) gone on a commercial/diplomatic offensive to get more Tests.

Sigh ...

[kawsar]

We need to visit Pakistan to restore cricket and then there will be Pakistan vs Bangladesh test cricket for a long time...this will only improve our test cricket and confident.

Pakistan is safe to visit now I visited and its normal out there